Airport Has Bomb Scare

DIGEST

May 17, 1996|Staff Reports

A rushed passenger leaving behind a package that looked like a bomb caused Palm Beach International Airport to evacuate part of Concourse C for two hours on Thursday.

An unidentified man who was late for his Delta flight to Atlanta on Thursday evening didn't have time to wait at the screening gate for his gray plastic tube. Someone tried to stop him, but he ran to his gate and boarded the plane just before 6 p.m., said Mike de Marcos, duty supervisor for the Department of Airports.

A screening security officer ran the tube through the X-ray machine, which showed a dense object inside. "That is a standard bad sign," de Marcos said. "That's why we called the bomb squad."

Officials evacuated 500 yards around the screening area in front of the concourse while the bomb squad examined the tube. Two Delta planes were delayed because of the evacuations.

When the passenger arrived in Atlanta, officials questioned him about the plastic tube. It turned out to be full of telephone equipment, de Marcos said.